More User Reviews:

A - Mirky brown beer. About 17 LU, tan-tinged spongey white head hangs out for a while.

S- sweet caramel, thats about all I'm gettin.

T- Sweet malty base with very sugary character, but nice and distinctive earthy hops come in and make this the only beer from this brewer with what I would call "bitter" qualities. I think this was my favorite of the bunch.

M- light but appealingly fuzzy

D- I could probably session this, definately have it with some good roast chicken, which I did.

Part of a four beer sample pack. Slightly murky medium brown appearance with a big puffy tan head that's rocky at the surface and holds some interesting topography. Complicated lacing, thick sheets and crystalline qualities. Malty aromas, dark brown sugar and some currant berry impressions. Smooth just-less-than medium mouthfeel, lower overall carbonation. Easy-going in the flavor department, lightly caramel with some husky impressions, just a hint of chocolate and an overall sweetness. Sense of 9.0% ABV is hardly there, helping drinkability. What's not really there in spades is more of a yeasty note or a more complex and interesting overall profile -- something seems to be missing for this type of beer.

(Served in a tulip glass)
best before A1011
A- This beer pours a walnut brown body that is dense and a bit hazy but glows a red hint at the base of the glass. There is a tan head that has a slight yellowish hue to it.

S- The dry pot caramel dark sugar has some woody brown malt notes to it and a slightly fruity ester aswell. There is a dark toffee note with some monastery yeast in the finish with an earthy quality.

T- The nutty pot caramel flavor has a soft sweetness to it and a dark caramel flavor also. There is a soft green note and a soft bitter note in the dry finish.

M- The medium mouthfeel has a tight scrubbing fizz and no real alcohol heat noticed.

O- This is a tasty beer that is simple but full of flavor and layers come through as the beer opens.

This beer pours a surprisingly clear red-brick amber colour, with a teeming climbing tower of fizzy, frothy, and loosely creamy beige head, which leaves a few wayward instances of wavecrest lace around the glass as it ever so slowly dissolves.

The carbonation is more than a tad frothy on the high, low, and everywhere in between palate, the body a sturdy medium weight, and adequately smooth, a faint hint of creaminess worming its way into my consciousness. It finishes off-dry, the weirdly subdued caramel and toffee sweetness almost consumed by a cellar dustiness, and some lingering earthy, musty hops.

I like me my BSDAs, and despite the frivolity surrounding this one, it's not quite up to the world beaters of the style. That shouldn't be a knock here, as it's a relative thing, and well, at this time of year, there's tons of good stuff from its Belgian brothers (laic and otherwise) available in Christmas and standard formats kickin' around. Still, try it if you can.

I guess this is a newer label than the one currently pictured. The monk on the older version has been joined by three pals on this newer label, who all look extremely joyful. You would be too if you had nothing to do but shut-up and drink beer all day. Note the three wooden barrels behind them...they're in for a hell of a night!

Crisp, crackling light tan head is about a half-inch thick, sitting atop of very bubbly body the color of root beer with ruby hues.

Huge malt in the aroma, big gooey caramel, toffee, some root beer, dark corn syrup glaze (as used for pecan pies), and just the slightest hint of sweet spices in the background.

Flavor is initially extremely likable, with more dark corn syrup immediately taking hold. It's a round, glowing sort of flavor, emanating in the mouth with the kind of caramel maltiness that reminds of Slo-Pokes, those sugar-bomb candies on a stick (that I haven't seen around since I was a kid). Some dessert spices creep in, which must be the yeast talking. Bit of burnt grain in the mix too, with sweet char bitterness in the finish.

The dominant sweetness tends to drag out a little long, and though I appreciate its somewhat unrefined feel and the well-hidden 9%, it's not as insanely drinkable as many in its class. There's very little to complain about though, especially with such a buttery, round, decadent texture, which I found to be the greatest aspect of this rich ale.

Above-average Belgian and beer. Dark brown with good lace throughout, and head. Mollasses and yeast and anise? Taste of brown sugar and mollases and yeast. Warming alcohol. Good at cellar temperature, likely better with meat like steak. Full mouthfeel and satisfying afterglow, but lack of taste complexity holds down my rating.

Overall Impression: Very flavorful. Kind of like the Pater Ale but a little stronger in the alcohol. All four beers are well crafted. For sure a four pack that you should pick up sometime, but in the winter.

A nice ruby/amber colour with a puffy tan head that fades slowly.
Looks really damn good.

Slightly fruity, some roastiness in the nose. Also a bit of spice in there. Notes of caramel are present. Not as complex as it could be, but certainly nice. Reveals some notes of fig and dried plum as it warms.

Interesting flavours, in a sense. I prefer my belgian darks a little richer, but this certainly offers a good bit of fruit, as well as some sweetness. Relatively sweet actually. I get some metal in there I think.

Carbonation is quite high and hits the mouth initially, but it doesnt linger long. Moderate body for this style, nothing special.

It's a good beer, but there is some alcohol heat there which detracts from the drinkability

Pours a half finger of head on a brown body.
The aroma is a musty barn smell and powdered cocoa mix.
The taste is grainy sweet with a mild bitterness.
The texture is crisp.
It alright, the alcohol content hides pretty well.

On tap at Lucky Baldwin's in Sierra Madre, CA. Served in a tulip. Pours. a thick dark brown (pretty clear brown liquid when looked at closely). Pours with the longest living tan head I've ever seen. It might last hours if undisturbed. Aroma is very dark malty and belgiany. The taste is quite malty with that Belgian yeast earth/spice, but the quality that stands out is a super sweet finish. My guess would be probably lots of candy sugar. The sweetness was a little much for me. The alcohol was well hidden.

This beer has a mellow flavor with slow but steady alcohol burn build., second in a 4 pack sampler of Kapittel's my brother got this summer. this beer has a burnt malt taste, almost like a rye, then it finishes with a taste like burnt brown sugar. The beer has alot of bubbles which turn into a thick tan head. It has a pretty good flavor which I wouldn't mind a second of though I also don't feel a strong need for one.

Pours a fairly cloudy deep brown, with red glints and a giant medium tan head that lasts forever. Smell is fruity, with raisins and plums coming through, along with brown-sugar maltiness and a bit of hot alcohol. Tastes rather fruity, though it's so muddled that I have a hard time separating the different strains out before the alcohol obliterates them. Mouthfeel is watery and rather thin, and drinkability is poor: a rare drainpour for me. Doesn't work at all as far as I'm concerned.

From the 11.23 oz. bottle marked best before June 2013. Sampled just in time on June 26, 2013.

The color is very nice with ruby red hues sparkling lively within the mahogany brown appearance. Decent head that settles down after a few minutes.

The aroma tends to be more subtle than what I expect from this style. It has Belgian yeast, Belgian sugar, moderate sweet malts, black licorice, and dark fruits like plum or red grape.

Medium body with a bit more acidity than I prefer.

The taste comes barreling back after a rather straight forward aroma with full malty sweetness and a lingering moderate bitterness - almost sour in its bitterness - at the finale. As it warms the taste improves.

Bottle: Poured a dark beer with a huge head with super great retention. Aroma is comprised of a mix of spices and roastiness. The mix of spices and roastiness is also very present in the taste and very enjoyable and is also accompanied by strong hops. Body is quite strong with good carbonation. The alcohol is extremely subtle which is a plus when you have a 9% beer. Overall, this is another great beer from a very underrated brewery.

Great appearance- Thick layer of fluffy head that lasts, lots of lace. Dark turbid brown with hints of red. A little murky for my taste.

Strong musky caramel and fruity aroma with hints of banana. The alcohol is masked delicately at first but it doesn't quite do the trick all the way through. Crisp,sweet bite that rounds out into a kind of bland malty aftertaste, my only real complaint for an otherwise good Belgain.